A group of South Korean adoptees have taken to social media to demand an apology from President Moon Jae-in over his controversial remarks on adoption and are calling for a change in landscape for future adoptees. In the wake of a series of child abuse cases, Moon recently said that adoptive parents should have the right to cancel their adoptions or switch their child. Although Cheong Wa Dae later explained he was referring to a grace period before an adoption is finalized and such foster care

Social Affairs Jan. 26, 2021

Park Young-sun, former minister of SMEs and Startups, announced her bid to run for Seoul mayor Tuesday, revealing a new compact city plan to improve the life of Seoulites. “In order to overcome the hardships and difficulties of COVID-19, we need a mayor to make Seoul a G-7 global digital economy city after the pandemic,” Park said at an online meeting at 11 a.m. in Yeouido, vowing to create a safe, fair and warm Seoul through the great transformation. The ruling bloc heavyweig

Politics Jan. 26, 2021

The head of a minor progressive opposition party was removed from his post on Monday over sexual harassment, marking the first time the leader of a political party in South Korea has stepped down due to sexual misconduct. The Justice Party -- which has been a strong advocate on gender equality issues -- has pledged to deal with this issue according to the principle of zero tolerance. On Monday Bae Bok-joo, head of the Justice Party’s gender human rights division, officially disclosed le

Politics Jan. 25, 2021

Shin Ji-hye, a 33-year-old feminist and socially liberal politician, hopes to set off sweeping changes in the nation and challenge social, financial and gender inequality, starting with the Seoul mayoral election. Shin, a representative of the minor Basic Income Party, and other members of her party believe a new social contract is necessary in an era where decent jobs are on the decline, poverty is growing, inequality is widening and housing prices are skyrocketing. “We created this

Politics Jan. 25, 2021

Artificial intelligence-based chatbot Lee Luda, which ended this month in ethical and data collection controversy, faces lawsuits on charges of violating personal information. On Friday, around 400 people filed a class action suit against the creator of the chatbot, Seoul-based startup Scatter Lab, claiming their personal information was leaked in the process of developing and providing the service. Launched on Dec. 23, Lee Luda, an AI chatbot service designed to imitate a 20-year-old colleg

Social Affairs Jan. 22, 2021

South Korea lacks a “big picture” for dealing with child abuse, and must break away from the idea that child abuse is a “family problem,” experts say. Although this is slowly changing, child abuse is still perceived as a family issue instead of a crime that society needs to intervene to stop. Even before the horrific death in October of a 16-month-old girl named Jeong-in, child abuse was nothing new. In 2020, a 9-year-old boy who was abused by his stepmother died afte

Social Affairs Jan. 20, 2021

A special investigation unit tasked with reinvestigating the 2014 Sewol ferry disaster announced Tuesday that it had put most of the allegations to rest without additional indictments, ending its 14-month investigation. The team said, “A total of 20 people were indicted after confirming that the Coast Guard command had violated its duty of care and that government officials such as Cheong Wa Dae and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries interfered with the special investigation

Social Affairs Jan. 19, 2021

An appellate court sentenced Samsung heir Lee Jae-yong to 2 1/2 years in prison Monday for bribery in a high-profile case involving former President Park Geun-hye, reopening a leadership vacuum at South Korea’s biggest tech giant. In the final verdict, announced at around 2:20 p.m., judges at the Seoul High Court said, “Considering all circumstances, it is inevitable that Lee is sentenced to prison and arrested in court.” Choi Ji-sung and Jang Choong-ki, two other Samsung ex

Social Affairs Jan. 18, 2021

Former Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, a member of the main opposition People Power Party, announced on Sunday his candidacy for the Seoul mayoral by-election. With Oh joining the race, the so-called “Big Three” from the opposition bloc -- including Ahn Cheol-soo, head of the minor opposition People’s Party, and Na Kyung-won, former floor leader of the conservative opposition -- are expected to compete for the title of unified candidate, who may be selected next month. The former m

Politics Jan. 17, 2021

The daily number of confirmed coronavirus cases in South Korea stayed in the 500s for a third consecutive day, officials said Thursday, hinting at a possible extension of tough social distancing measures to prevent a resurgence. The government’s central response team said the number of new COVID-19 cases increased by 524 to 77,728 as of midnight. The third wave, which began in mid-November, has seen a gradual decline in the new year. Of the new confirmed cases, 496 were locally transmit

Social Affairs Jan. 14, 2021

Na Kyung-won, former floor leader of the conservative opposition, on Wednesday announced her bid for Seoul mayor, becoming the latest bigwig challenger to enter the April 7 by-elections. With Na announcing her bid, the battle from the opposition bloc is solidifying into a three-way race with head of the minor opposition People’s Party Ahn Cheol-soo and Oh Se-hoon, who was mayor of Seoul from 2006-2011. Ahn joined the race last month and Oh has vowed to run if Ahn does not join the main o

Politics Jan. 13, 2021

The post of Seoul mayor is a steppingstone toward taking power from the ruling bloc, according to Ahn Cheol-soo, the Seoul mayoral front-runner and head of the minor opposition People’s Party, saying the government's failures range from its COVID-19 response to its real estate policies.  Ahn said the government’s loose quarantine measures have prolonged the coronavirus crisis and put self-employed businesspeople and small business owners under even more pressure. 

Politics Jan. 13, 2021

For the first time in history, a Seoul court has ruled that the Japanese government is liable to pay compensation for wartime sex slavery, ordering it to give 100 million won ($91,340) to each victim. The Seoul Central District Court said at 9:55 a.m. on Friday that “State immunity cannot be applied to crimes against humanity” in regards to the suit that 12 victims had filed against the Japanese government. The case began when the 12 so-called comfort women, including the late Ba

Social Affairs Jan. 8, 2021

Heavy snow that fell overnight combined with a cold wave have disrupted travel in South Korea, snarling traffic on icy roads, suspending rail services and canceling flights. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, heavy snow began to fall in Seoul from around 7 p.m. the previous day and recorded 13.7 centimeters of snow as of 1 p.m. on Thursday. Temperatures in the city dropped to minus 16.5 degrees Celsius. As roads became icy and cars slowed down, traffic slowed to an average

Social Affairs Jan. 7, 2021

Four inmates infected with coronavirus at a detention center in Seoul filed a compensation suit against the Ministry of Justice over for a negligence of quarantine. This is the first time that prisoners at a correctional facility have filed a lawsuit against the state in relation to COVID-19. Four inmates at Dongbu Detention Center in eastern Seoul filed a petition with the Seoul Central District Court to claim a total of 40 million won ($36,771) -- 10 million won per person -- at around 11 a.

Social Affairs Jan. 7, 2021